Devon's smile was a slow curl of triumph. The arrogance and superiority he showed now was something she hadn't seen in Switzerland. Or had she not wanted to see it?
God, how had she so lost her mind to have actually slept with this man, let alone believe she loved him at one time? But she couldn't make herself regret it. Without Devon, she wouldn't have had Amber, and her child was more than worth every moment of hell he had put her through.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Edgewood, but that's not precisely true." Cassie's voice was soft, cool, assured.
Edgewood frowned. "I checked this law just to be certain, Ms. Sinclair."
Cassie shuffled through her papers, pulled a file free, then handed it to the attorney.
"As you'll see, Breed Law in many areas has stipulations that must be addressed in each situation." She handed out copies of the particular law.
Edgewood read, frowned, then stared back at Cassie. "This isn't entirely legal," he stated. "This law is not in an accessible area . . ."
"Had you done as you were advised when you checked the statutes and laws that apply to the Breed society, you would have read the clause on addendums and notations attached to it. Many of our laws have such addendums, Mr. Edgewood. Our country, those elected to protect and preserve all human life, were involved in our creation, our imprisonment and the torturous deaths of our children before they had a chance to consider escape. Because of that, any question in regard to child welfare or extraction of a child from Sanctuary can and will be known and understood before any such action is taken. The Bureau of Breed Affairs was not notified of this complaint, nor of any accusation of neglect or endangerment. Added to that, Mr. Marshal relinquished all rights to Ms. Broen's child at the child's birth." She flashed him a sunny smile. "You do remember me, don't you, Mr. Marshal?"
His jaw set as fury shimmered in his blue eyes.
"What is she talking about, Devon?" Edgewood questioned him.
"Here's what she's talking about." Cassie laid out another paper. "Signed, notarized and filed with the Bureau of Breed Affairs. Mr. Marshal signed away all parental rights, as represented by his legal counsel at the time, one Mr. Claude Desmond of Nevada."
Edgewood's look was one of ice as he stared at Devon.
"That's not legal," Devon stated. "I didn't fully understand what she intended to do with Amber. And that's besides the fact. Child Protective Services is to have the baby until the charges have been decided anyway."
"It doesn't work that way, Mr. Marshal," Cassie said sweetly. "Child Protective Services has no jurisdiction here."
"Amber is not a fucking Breed brat," Devon snarled, his tone nasty, his expression filled with disgust. "That fucking law doesn't apply to her."
"A fucking Breed brat. What an interesting choice of words," Cassie stated succinctly. "As though our children have no worth. Is that how you see it?"
"Shut up, Devon," Edgewood warned him.
"Don't tell me to shut up," Devon snapped. "And hell yes, that's how I see it. Amber is a Marshal. She's human, not a damned animal or an animal's whelp."
Jonas tensed. Rachel felt the dangerous tension that slowly tightened his body.
"Do something with your client, John," he ordered the attorney. "Before I do."
Whether it was the sight of the incisors flashing at the sides of Jonas's mouth or the look of murderous fury in his gaze, Devon subsided with a childish pout and glared at Rachel once again.
"This changes things, Mr. Edgewood." The mayor lifted his head from the document before glancing at the Child Protective Services agent. "Ms. Blanchard? Do you see anything I don't?"
"I agree with your assessment," the kindly middle-aged child services representative stated as she too closed her file. "The child can't be taken from Sanctuary."
"Sanctuary has no rights over non-Breed children," Frost defended their position.
"Read your file, Daniel," Edgewood advised him. "Mr. Wyatt himself has signed the documents necessary to incorporate Ms. Broen's child into Sanctuary, which has been written into Breed Law and signed by our president as well as by Congress. She doesn't have to be a Breed; her mother merely has to be considered a Breed's mate, which by her presence, I assume she's agreeable to?" Edgewood stared back at her.
Jonas's tension ratcheted by several degrees.
"I'm agreeable." There was no way she couldn't be. She couldn't lose her child, and she was well aware she was fighting a losing battle where Jonas was concerned.
"Whore!" Devon sneered, a long, drawn-out hiss of viciousness.
Rachel's hand tightened on Jonas's thigh as she felt him move. The insult was designed to draw a reaction from Jonas, one Devon and/or his lawyers could use against the Breeds and Rachel in a battle to take possession of Amber.
He didn't move. He sat still, silent, his full attention locked on Devon as Rachel felt the promise of retribution pouring from him.
"Daniel, Ryan, please take Devon back to the limo," Edgewood snapped as Cassie rose slowly to her feet, centering an imperious, icy glare on the other man.
"Mr. Edgewood, before you file any motion with any court, or attempt to take one of our children from Sanctuary, perhaps you should do a full investigation into Breed Law and all the steps necessary to so much as file an intent to file," she informed him. "Mating laws are complicated, exacting and, trust me, created to be unbreakable for the next two centuries. Think of that before you attempt to have Ms. Broen's child placed with anyone other than her mother."
Edgewood grimaced before gathering together the files and documents Cassie laid out for him and storing them in his case.
"I apologize for my client, Director Wyatt," Edgewood expressed as he snapped his case closed and prepared to leave.
"No apology necessary, John," Jonas drawled as he too moved to his feet. "Think nothing of it."
Rachel shivered at the sound of intent in Jonas's voice, and Edgewood was no man's fool. His sharp glance settled on Jonas before he nodded slowly and turned back to Cassie with a muttered, "I'll be in touch."
The room cleared, and seconds later the dark blinds over the windows slowly eased up once again.
"This isn't the end of it," Cassie informed them both. "And a piece of advice to both of you: Marshal could demand proof of the mating, which unfortunately you cannot provide until you actually mate."
"How long do we have, Cassie?" Jonas asked, his voice tight.
Cassie paused, glanced at Rachel, then smiled gently. "Enough time, Jonas. I don't think we need to worry." A small frown edged at her brows then. "At least, not yet."
Rachel rubbed her hands together, still feeling chilled and frightened.
"When did you do all this?" she whispered, turning to Jonas. "The paperwork, accepting Amber into Breed society, declaring me as your mate?"
There was a hardness to his face that was almost frightening.
"I declared you as my mate before her birth. Once she was born, I filled out the paperwork to accept her as my daughter."
"You adopted her?" she asked incredulously.
He shrugged his shoulders before rubbing at the back of his neck. "I didn't adopt her, I accepted her. There's a difference. A Breed isn't required to adopt a child. Once he or she is accepted as the Breed's responsibility, then it's his child, whether that child lives in Sanctuary or in Haven, or not. It's simply a part of Breed Law to ensure that a mate cannot be governed by society's laws any more than a Breed can be. We're self-governed, completely, unless we declare aggression against the nation itself, not just its laws or law enforcement agencies."
Rachel knew Breed Law was deliberately complicated, and much of its explanations left out unless one were given permission to see a particular law in full. The red tape required to do so was lengthy and expensive.